Clothes-drying rack



April 2o, 1926.

W. C. MOORS CLOTHES DRYING RACK Filed Feb. 14, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 WALTER CMooRs,

flor Mq April 20, 1926.

W. C. MOORS CLOTHES DRYING RACK Filed Feb. 14, 1924 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 WALTER C MQORS,

' W. C. MOORS cLo-THES DRYING RACK Filed Feb. 14, 1924 April 2Q 5 Sheets-'Sheet 3 um I i JYVUQ'HOL, WALTER C. MooRs,

Patente-d Apr. 20, ,1926.

PATENT* oFFicE.

' WALTER c. Moons, 0F oWENsBoRo, KENTUCKY.

cLoTH'Efs-DRYI'NG mick.

Application. filed Februaryk 14, 1924. iSeiri'a'l No. $2,816;

To all/whom it may concern,

Beit known that I, WALTER citizen of the United States, residing at Owensboro,V in the county of Daviess and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new 'and usefulv Improvements in Clothes--` Drying Racks, of which the following-is a specification, reference being. had thereln'to the accompanyinwdrawing. Y

The present invention. relates to. clothes drying racks, and aims'to providea noveland improved construct-ion of that kind.

A more specific object of the inventionY is' the provision of such a rack having al post with'means for securing it firmly vin place between and clamped against the floor and ceiling of a room. p .y

Another object is the provision of novel rack members movably mounted on the-post to be convenientlyl positioned for placing the clothes thereon and Aremo-ving. the.Y clothes therefrom, and including radial arms or 'bars adapted to be folded adjacent to the post when not in use.

A further ob'ect isthe provision of novel means for adjustably supporting the Yrack members on the post, and for conveniently enabling the rack membersY to be raised and lowered and to be supported at'different ver-- tical positions. 1

It is also an object of the invention to pro'- vide such a rack. struct-ure which is comparatively ,simple and inexpensive in con-I struction, which will have a comparatively large .capaci-ty while requiring comparatively little space within the room, and which can be compactly folded to' be stored away when not in use.

Vith Vthe foregoing and otherobjects in` view, which will be app-arent as the ldescrip-y tion proceeds, the invention resides in the construction and arrangement of parts, asr khereinafter' described and claimed, 1t being Figs. 2, 3,4 and 5 are enlarged horizontalsections ony the respective lines 2 2, 3 3, JL-:4, and 5-5 of Fig. 1.

C. Moons, a

Fig. Y6 a vertical section on the line of Fig. .2,1 portionsfbeing broken away.

Fig. 7 is an elevation of the' pole orl rod. I

used for raising and lowering the rack members, showing the socket tube in section. l c Fig. i8v is a perspective view ofthe rack.

showing amodiied formof stand. Y

Fig. 9 is a detail View of the modified, c form ofstand, partly in elevation, and

partly in section, showing the same fitted over a stake as when -using the rack out-ofdors. Y v

F ig. l() is a detail view of the upper end portion of Athe stand and clamp, portions being broken away and shown in section.

Fig. 11 is a cross section on the line'11-11 of Fig. l10. y y y In carrying out the invention, there is provided a post 10 which is, adjustable vertically for rooms of different heights, and the lower' portion of the post is fitted slidably in aV secured in the' base.y The post is slidable mina-l of the post in the stand for vertical adj ustment;

Thepost 10,\base 11 and bars 12inay beV of wood orV other suitable material, and a head 16of similar material is fitted loosely on the reduced upper end portion 14 of the post. The head 16 is of inverted conical form', having a central aperture receivingy the post, and having a flared rim to Contact with the ceilingl s'iirroiinding'l the upper end of the post. A washer 15 is secured on the upperv endl of the post by a` screw 15 or other securing element, for retaining the headl on the post, and acoiled wire spring 17 surrounds lthe portionv 14 and is confined be-v tween thehead 16 and the shoulder 17 a of the post.V

In order to vclamp thepos't 10 in different Vertical positions rela-tively tothe stand, the stand isiV formed with a clamp at its upperV endy to Iembrace the'v post'. The uppertermb.

nals of the bars 12 form part of the clamp, l

said bars being adapted to be sprung toward* one another to clamp the postbetween them-.

Plates 18eitend across' the edges of' the 12 and opposite sides of the post 10, and are secured, by means of screws 19 or otherwise, to the upper terminal of one bar 12. The plates 18 may be connected b y a yoke 20 so as to constitute a single band of VU-shape, thereby adding strength to the structure. Screws 21 or other elements are secured in the other bar 12 and work in slots 22 provided in the plates 18, and a cam 23 is pivotally mounted between the plates 18 on a bolt or pin 23at extending through said plates and cam to contact with the bar that is slidable between the plates 18. Said cam, has a "handle or lever 24. When the lever 24 is swung downwardly the cam 23 lforces the corresponding bar 12 toward the opposite bar, as seen in Fig. 6, thereby clamping the j post 10 between said bars and maintaining the adjustment of the rack. When the lever 24 is swung upwardly, the post 1Q is loosened so that it can be moved vertically in the stand.

In order to position the device in a room, the post and stand are slid together, whereby the 'device can be readily placed at the desired position on the floor. The base 11 is set on the floor, and the post 10 is then raised to bring the head 16 against the ceiling and to compress the spring. 17. The head 16 being fitted loosely on the unner terminalportion 14 of the post, can tilt relatively to the post, so as to bear flatly against the ceiling,

should the surface of the ceiling not be level or should the post be slightly inclined from a vertical position. VThe lever 24 is swung downwardly to clamp the post 10 within the` stand, and the spring 17 being compressed will hold the base-11 and head 16 against fthe floor and ceiling, respectively, under pressure to prevent theV device from being displaced or knocked down. The vspring 17 thus separates the base and head with suflicient pressure to hold them tightly against the floor and ceiling. To loosen the post, the lever 24 is simply swung upwardly which permits the post 10 to slide down into the stand, to reduce the height of the rack,

, so that it can be removed or taken down.

Two rack members or frames are mounted on the ost, as shown, although any number of t em can be, used as may be found suitable under different circumstances; Each j rack member or 'frame comprises a set of radial arms or bars 25 extending in different directions in a horizontal plane from a hub 26 which is slidabley and rotatable on the post. The .hub 26 has pairs of radial vertical flanges or bracket arms 28y projecting therefrom, and said flanges or arms 28 are connected at their outer ends and lower edges by the cross bars or pieces27 over which the arms 25 extend. The hub 26 has a Y flat annular flange 29 above the inner ends of the flanges 28 under which the inner ends of the arms 25 n extend. Staples or U-shaped keepers 32 have their ends driven or secured within the arms 25 at the lower edges thereof around the cross bars 27, for retaining the arms 25 in operative connection with the hub member, said keepers 32 being of sufficient size to enable the arms 25 to be slid longitudinally a limited distance and to be swung upwardly and downwardly.

When the arms 25 are in operative position they are ina horizontal plane with their inner ends extending under and bearing upwardly against the flange 29, and with the arms seating on the cross bars 27 the` arms being slid inwardly to engage under said flange 29. By vsliding the arms outwardly they are withdrawn from under the flange 29, and the rarms can then swing downwardly to folded or collapsed position, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 6, the kee ers 32 serving to loosely suspend the arms. lhe

arms 25 can thus be arranged close to the post when the rack is not in use. lTo bring the arms in position for supporting the clothes or other articles, the arms are swung upwardly to vhorizontal position and then slid inwardly to move the inner ends of the arms under the flange 29. The keepers 32 thus connect the arms with the hub memberV for the longitudinal slidingrand vertical swinging movements of said arms. Y

Each rack member or frame is adjustably supported on the post to beV disposed at different vertical positions conveniently, and

to Vpermit theL rack member torotate inany.

of its vertical positions. Thus, va supporting sleeve 36 isslidably mounted on the post under each hub 26, and the hub Vseats, on the upper end of said sleeve. The sleeve is splitv diametrically, and thetwo sections rthereof are secured together byrmeans of clamping bolts or screws 37. The adjacent ends of the hub 26 and sleeve 36 have a. swivel connection whereby they move one with the other, and the hub 26 canrotate while the sleeve 36 issecured in position on the post. Thus,

the lower end of the hub 26 has an outstand-` ing annular flange 38, and the upper end of the sleeve 36 has an annular groove portion 39 embracing and engaging over the flange 38. The portion 39 can be readily engaged over the flange 38 when the sections of theY sleeve 36 are brought together.

Each sleeve 36 carries means for clamping it to the post. Thus, the sleeve has outstandmerma bottom of the recess-49y to lswing the dog into engagement with the post, whereby the dog,2

when released, will causel the sleeve 36 to bind on or grip the post for supporting thel rack member or frame.` f

The dog 42 of each sleeve 36 at its outerend with a vdepending finger 45,

45 has a notch 48 for the engagementof the catch 46, when the finger `45 is swung away from the post so as to Vmove thedog 42 to releasing position. vWhen the catch. is engaged in the notch 48, the dog is held in released position, thereby permitting the sleeve 36 and hub 26 tomove upwardly and downwardly ion the postffreely.

A pole or rod 49 is' used for conveniently raising and lowering the rack members. l A.

tube 50 isv fittedon the upper` end of said pole or stick 49,v and provides a socket; to receive the finger 45; of the dog 42. Said pole is of sufiicient length in order to raise the upper rack member to the upper end of the post. lhen using the pole 49, the tube or socket member 50 is moved upwardly into engagement with the finger 45 of the corm responding dog 42, and the lower end of the pole is then swung away from the post, which will swing the dog 42 downwardly out of engagement with the post. The rack member can then be conveniently raised or lowered with the pole 49, and when the pole 49 is swung inwardly the dog 42 is returned into engagement with the post, for supporting the rack member in its adjusted position.

When filling a rack member with clothes, it is moved to a lowered position, and the upper rack member is first filled. Then, the rack member is slid upwardly by simply pushing it upward, and will be supported in its raised position by the dog 42. The next rack can then be filled and slid upwardly to a position below the clothes on the .upper rack member. Although the pole or stick 49 can be used for pushing the rack members upwardly, they can be raised in any suitable manner, inasmuch as the dogs 42 can drag along the post when the rack members are raised. However, the dogs must be released to enable the rack members to be lowered, so that the pole or stick 49 is used for letting the rack members move down.

Then it is desired to lower the rack meinbers, the tube or socket member 50 of the pole 49 is engaged with the finger 45, and the pole is swung outwardly away from the post, to release the dog 42, and the rack member can then be readily lowered with the pole. The lowermost rack member is first lowered andthe clothes removed therefrom, after which the upper rack member is lowered and emptied.

When the rack is not in use, the arms 25 Ais provided canbe' swungY downwardly adjacent to Athe post, sot'hat the rackwill not consume much ,space,1 and the rack," when lloosened from- *thev ceiling, canfbe taken-'down and `stored away within small space.

The rack can also be used inthe corner of a room byplacing the post atthe corner of thenroomiafter those arms 25 adjacent to the walls of the roomkhave been swung downwardly, so that only the' remaining arms arer available for supporting the clothes. Thisv arrangement is ksatisfactory when the full capacity ofthe rack is noty required.- v Figs. 8, 9, 10 and 11 illustrate a different stand for the postj 10, said post and rack' members'carried thereby being the saine as:

hereinbefore described; The stand 'com-v vprisesa hollow conical Vbase 11 and ay verlower 'terminal of the post is fitted tele-v scopically within the tube, to permit the post to be raised and lowered. Y

The upper end portion of the tube 12 has a clamp to embrace the post for supporting the post from the stand in dierent adjustments. Thus, a collar or band 18 embraces the upperend portion of the tube 12 and is secured to saidtube in any suitable manner. The collar has the outstanding ears 20 through which a rivet or other pivot element 19 is engaged, and a cani 23 is mounted for turning movement on said pivot between the ears. Said cam has a lever or handle 24 for convenience in turning the cam, and that portion of the tube between the cam and post is free to be sprung inwardly. Thus, the tube 12 has slots 22 extending downwardly vfrom the upper end of the tube, and located at opposite sides of the cam 23, thereby forming an upwardly extending resilient tongue 21 fitting the post and located between the post and cam. When the lever 24 isy swung downwardly, the cam 23 bears against the tongue 21 and forces said tongue inwardly, to clamp the post between the tongue and the opposite side of the tube. The tongue 21 is free from the band or collar 18 so that said tongue can be sprung inwardly, and said tongue has a broad bearing surface to contact with the post, to provide an effective clamping action.

In each form of stand, the stand is hollow to telesco-pically receive the post, and the upper end of the stand carries a cam, while the stand is provided at its upper end with an upwardly extending resilient portion between the post and cani to be sprung toward the opposite side ofthe stand by the cam to clamp the post.

By using the tubular or hollow stand, the

used out-of-doors.V fThus, as shown in Fig. 9, a stake 70 can be driven in the ground, and the tube 12 can be fitted over said stake to hold the rack `in uprightJ position', the base ll being seatable on the ground. In this way, the rack'can be conveniently used outside as well as in the house.

The' present invention is an impro-vement over the clothes drying rack disclosed in my application led April 23, 1923,* Serial No. 634,022, and this application is in part a continuation of such application. Y

Having thus described the invention, whatV confined between said head and post for yieldingly moving the head upwardly on the post to clamp the base and head against the floor and ceiling, respectively, and a member on the upper terminal of the post Vthe sleeve, a dog pivotally carried by the sleeve to engage the post for clamping the sleeve to the post and having a depending finger to be swung away from the post for disengaging the dog from the post, said finger having a notch, and a catch pivotally carried by the sleeve to be swung upwardly into engagement with said notch for holding the dog disengaged from the post, said catch swinging downwardV away from said linger when the finger is swung further away from the post. f Y

In testimony whereof I hereunto aHiX my signature.

Y WALTER C. MOORS.

vso 

